Bloom
by CalicoCaligina
Summary: Flowers are the music of the ground From earth's lips spoken without sound


**AN: Happy Valentine's day!**

He loved it when the handsome man came to buy flowers. The man, dressed in his fancy Armani suit would stand for a long time, simply gazing upon the blooming plants in the moist greenhouse. It struck a lovely picture, the man all sharp angles and towering build, with lighting shining down from the glass panels of the greenhouse and flowers blooming all about him, like a real-life shoujo manga panel.

Aki was almost envious of the man's lover whom he so carefully chose flowers for. Okay, scratch that, he was definitely jealous. And who wouldn't be, the man was fucking _gorgeous_. A lean figure with a muscular torso and strong arms defined wonderfully by his tight-fitting suit. And those _hands_. Aki almost drooled over the long fingers and smooth calluses (he had accidentally felt them more than once when handing over a bouquet). He would never admit it, but he had fantasized about what those hands could do to him. Hey, a guy could dream, right? And he had had _several_ dreams. Dreams that would surely make the man blush if he knew exactly what Aki wanted from him.

A polite cough drew him out of his reverie. Golden eyes glinted in amusement. The man stood there, a slight smile tugging up the corner of his mouth. "Good morning Takaba-san." Asami said wryly. Then again, maybe he knew exactly what Aki felt.

"Good morning Asami-san!" Shit, he could feel the traitorous blush creeping up his cheeks. Good thing it was always warm in the shop. "What'll it be today?"

"Can you make me a simple bouquet of pink and white camellias please? And, of course, whatever you see fit."

Pink and white camellias. _I long for you; you're adorable_ , in the language of flowers. Of course, Aki doubted that the man knew what the blossoms meant, he seemed the type to pick based purely on aesthetics, but still felt another shoot of bitter jealousy. "Alrighty then, how about a lovely combination of pink and white camellias, some baby's breath, and some yellow carnations?" He felt a little bit of impish amusement when the man nodded, clearly oblivious to why Aki had chosen yellow pretty flowers symbolized _rejection_.

Well, they were clearly a happy couple (honestly, the man bought flowers once a week), and he was sure that the other party wouldn't understand the little hidden message either, not many bothered to memorize flower meanings. So he might as well have a bit of fun if he couldn't have the man, right? Tying together the bouquet with a silky yellow ribbon, he handed it to Asami. The man looked at it with approving eyes. "It's perfect, thank you." He swiped his card, admiring the flowers. Aki had to admit, the entire thing had come together quite well, a sweet spring arrangement that oozed femininity. The recipient would surely be pleased.

"You're welcome!" Damn, now he felt a bit guilty for those yellow carnations.

But still, the man did not mind at all, and when he swept out of the shop again, those strong hands delicately holding the bouquet, Aki thought he saw him holding a yellow carnation and smiling, bemused.

* * *

It became a game of sorts. For every arrangement, he managed to sneak in just one snarky blossom. Marigold or yellow hyacinth for jealousy, orange lily for disdain, and maybe even a yellow rose for infidelity. They all blended in perfectly with their respective arrangements, and no one was ever the wiser. It was his little bit of fun, to soothe the itch in his soul that the handsome hot guy—whom he would love to get in bed with—was taken.

But somehow, the flowers the man asked for always perfectly balanced out his spiteful ones. His elegant white cala lilies: _beauty_. Red chrysanthemums, vibrant and bold: _love_. Lush, blooming gardenias, petals as soft as could be: _you're lovely_. Once, even lily in the valley, blossoms demurely drooping: _you've made my life complete_.

And as always, Aki would go and pick the flowers, grudgingly picking the prettiest blossoms, for he could never bring himself to disappoint the man. He would arrange them, tying them together with lovely ribbon and handing them over to the man, always grazing those long fingers just a bit. The sleek black card would swipe, and the man would be off to give those flowers to a lucky girl who probably knew exactly how lucky she was.

He felt like a side character who didn't even know one of the protagonists. Just once or twice, he was tempted to at least try. It would be so easy, to reach over and grab the man's hand, to charmingly ask if he wanted to go out for coffee or something. But then he would push away the whimsical thoughts, and just hand over the bouquet. He would get rejected, he knew that much, and he didn't really want to come across as desperate, even if he was.

Even side characters had their pride, after all.

* * *

Akihito also _hated_ Valentine's day with a passion. It was always a rush, frazzled men rushing in and demanding the most generic bouquets, as fast as possible without so much as a please or thank you.

It was awfully strange, Aki always thought, how a holiday of love could inspire so much stress. And thus he was stuck wrapping up insane amounts of roses, pricking his fingers on the errant thorn, nothing but pink, red, pink, white, and more _red_ whirling past his eyes. Really, did nobody have imagination these days? He appreciated a rose as much as anyone else, but at times he tired of seeing just roses all the time.

Another businessman sent off with a box of chocolates and red bouquet, he slumped against the counter. The bell on the door cheerily tinkled, and he mentally groaned and straightened up.

"Long day?" The familiar voice chuckled.

Aki's head snapped up. And sure enough, there was Asami, sharp as always in his suit. "Sorry, it looks like I'm here to worsen your workload."

"Not at all!" Aki smiled, though it soured a bit as he remembered the holiday. Ah, yes, of course the man would come and buy flowers for Valentine's Day. "Would you like a bouquet of red roses then?"

"No, actually, I've never been overly fond of such typical flowers." Asami shook his head. "I'd like some variegated tulips, if you have any?"

"Wow," Aki smiled. "The first guy today to _not_ get roses. I'm impressed. I'll go grab some tulips." He turned, walking away as he frowned in concentration. Variegated tulips? For some reason, he couldn't remember what those in particular meant. Strange, he could usually remember most meanings.

He gently picked out the tulips, admiring how the red streaks stood out against the otherwise white petals. They would make a lovely bouquet for Valentine's, a perfect mix of traditional red with something a bit different. Even the man's taste in gifts was impeccable it seemed. He returned with the flowers, carefully wrapped up with paper and a ribbon. "Will this do?"

"They're perfect." Asami said, already admiring the flowers. "You always arrange them so well, Takaba-san."

Aki just ducked his head, still blushing like he did at every piece of praise the man gave him. "I'm glad you love them. I'm sure the recipient will too."

"You think?" The man's eyes brightened almost imperceptibly. He swiped the card, not even looking at the price.

Aki nodded, forcing a smile and handing over the bouquet. He really was jealous of that woman after all. "For sure!"

"Then it's a promise."

He paused, cocking his head at the odd choice of words. "Um…" He looked up.

The man smiled charmingly, holding the bouquet just a tad too tightly. "Takaba Akihito…will you do me the honor of going out with me?" He held out the tulips that Aki had wrapped up for him mere moments ago.

Akihito stared blankly, and finally remembered what multicolored tulips meant.

 _You have beautiful eyes._


End file.
